(July 5, 2010 - Insidermedicine)

Being either a cyberbully or a victim of cyberbulling is linked with a number of psychiatric and physical symptoms, according to research published in the June issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

Here is some information about cyberbullying:

•    It refers to repeated acts using mobile phones, computers, or other electronic communication devices that are deliberately aggressive or intimidating in nature.

•    It often happens under the radar of adults, as they are not always aware of the multiple electronic tools adolescents use to communicate

•    It can be particularly damaging because it can touch a victim virtually anywhere, and negative messages about the victim can quickly be spread to a wide audience

Researchers from Turku University in Finland distributed questionnaires about cyberbulling to nearly 2,500 Finnish students in grades 7 and 9. The questionnaires also asked the participants for information about their demographics, general health, substance abuse, experiences with traditional bullying behavior, and symptoms typically associated with stress, such as head and stomach pain.

More than 2,000 of the adolescents completed and returned the questionnaires. Based on what they reported, during the six months prior to the survey, nearly 5% had been victims of cyberbullying, over 7% had acted as cyberbullies, and over 5% had been both victims and perpetrators. Factors associated with either cyberbulling or being cyberbullied included perceived difficulty with managing emotions, concentration, behavior, or getting along with others as well as recurrent headache and feeling unsafe at school. In addition, victims reported recurrent abdominal pain and sleep problems, while cyberbullies were more likely to report hyperactivity, conduct problems, infrequent helping behaviors, and frequent smoking or getting drunk.

Today’s research highlights the increasing problem of cyberbullying, which can make victims feel unsafe anywhere, even in their own homes.